Metroid: Entourage
by Xenolord
Summary: Rewrite. Veteran Galactic Federation Marine Creer Andromeda is paired with newcomer Bounty Hunter Samus Aran to investigate below the surface of Zebes. Story contains all cononical Metroid Games, save Other Mbarrassment. Rated M for Language.
1. Metroid Zero Mission: Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own the Metroid Franchise, although after Other M, I'm convinced I could do oodles better. Hell, I'm convinced ANYONE could do oodles better. I only own Creer Andromeda

Author's Note: A re-write from a classic from years ago, I bring you Metroid: Entourage.

Metroid: Entourage

Metroid: Zero Mission

Prologue

My name is Creer Andromeda. I'm a member of the Galactic Federation Marines, and one of the best in Platoon 07. What makes me so good? Some would say it's a clever mix of having a library of real-life situations to fall back on in times of need, and a quick wit and quicker trigger finger. I'm more inclined to believe it's because of my heritage. I was part of a Federation experiment to infuse the blood of the Chozo, an ancient bird-like race who seemingly died out years ago, into a living, human test-subject. The result was me, more flexible then the average man, faster, stronger... you know. Six-Million Dollar Man shit.

Apparently, their technology can only be accessed by Chozo blood, so the implications of having a soldier infused with Chozo blood would be many and varied. Ancient as the Chozo were, and peaceful, they had the most advanced weapons and equipment in the known galaxy, making their technology rare, and very hard to come by. The boon of having a Federation Backing proved useful fairly early in my career, as a shipment of technology from SR-233 had yielded an in-tact Chozo Battle Suit and, being the only one who could activate it, I was given the honor to pilot it.

The Chozo have some impressive technology, everything from nano-muscle enhancement, all the way to micro-reactive armor paneling. The normally ten foot suit condensed down to fit an average human frame quite nicely, fitting me just where I needed it. Bonded and locked to my genetic signature, it would have been a pointless, fruitless endeavor for the Federation to attempt to remove the suit, so I was gifted it by my commanding officer, Adam Malcovich.

Adam was about as close to a father as I had, outside of my actual family on Ceres Station. He taught me everything I knew, and even a few things I didn't know I knew until later. I'll never forget what Adam told me when he ordered the suit assigned to me. "The suit's yours, Creer. But I'll be watching you. You're still a member of the Federation, and my Platoon... just remember that." I wouldn't regret staying a member of Platoon Seven, and even when it was time for me to leave, I still felt I had a connection to the Platoon. Adam did not throw me away, you understand, quite contrare, he released me from the Platoon, because I was making everyone else look bad. I felt, and coincidentally was, unstoppable, and I knew it. I wouldn't however, stay at the top of the list forever.

It was a few weeks after I left Platoon Seven that Adam called me to his office. He had the usual calm in his voice as I sat. As he made a habit of, he offered me a cigar which I refused as a habit. I think he was just trying to get rid of them. As disgusting as Synthagars were, they were argued to be a healthy, non-addictive substitute for regular tabacco cigars. They tasted like ass with a slight overtone of shit. He faced me, and in his dull, mechanical tone, he told me he had an assignment for me. My recent re-association with the Galactic Federation, combined with what he knew of me already, and the powers; both apparent and latent, had made me a perfect candidate for this job.

"Creer, you've heard of a planet called Zebes, right?" He spoke, a hologram of a dustball appearing from the projector on his desk. I shook my head slightly, the name being alien to me. "Didn't think so. It's on the very fringe of Federation Controlled Space, so it stands to reason that it would be a perfect base of operations for Space Pirate raids on Outer Rim Colonies and supply ships. Several convoys have gone missing around Zebes, and the higher-ups are concerned. We've sent three platoons to investigate, and the first one is the only one to report in." He pushed another button on his desk and activated an audio player. "This was their communication."

"_Galactic Federation Platoon 08, Sergeant Miles Jupiter reporting. We've just landed on Zebes, and already we're on edge. The surface is barren, no life whatsoever. Initial scans of the surface indicate that there are twisting corridors and tunnels just below the surface, creating a natural maze. We'll set up base here, and investigate later._" He turned the player off.

"That was their first, last, and only communication. All attempts to investigate Zebes with military power has failed. I need someone I can trust to look into it. Maybe a smaller vessel can slip onto Zebes without whatever is on it noticing, so I'll be sending you along with some backup."

"Riggs?" I asked, smiling and remembering my buddy from training. Anthony Riggs underwent the same Heavy Weapons training I did, specializing in Plasma technology, while I went the explosive route. We had a standing poker game every Tuesday night.

"No." He answered plainly. "Lieutenant Riggs is currently pre-occupied, as is the rest of Platoon Seven. No, I'll be sending you in with someone new." He pushed a third button. "Send him in." He spoke, the door to the left of me opening, a bulky figure appearing in the frame. Whoever this person was, wore a very similar suit to mine, except this one was yellow in the places where mine was blue, and red where mine was white, her pauldrons were angled down and smooth while mine went straight out and had ridges down their length. We both had cannons mounted to our arms, but mine was on my left hand, while his was on his right. The visor on this duplicate glowed a soft yellow, as mine glowed red, and a chozo symbol on his chest where a Federation Emblem was on mine. I did a slight double take, as did the other.

"Hello." I spoke simply as I looked them over.

"Good afternoon." The second spoke, their voice sounding rather mechanical.

"Creer, this is Samus Aran, a Bounty Hunter, and currently a Contractor with the Federation. You'll be working with him." My eyes shifted under the visor from Adam to Samus, then back to Adam.

"Adam, no offense, but this guy doesn't look very seasoned combat wise." I turned to Samus and spoke clearly. "How much combat have you seen, exactly?"

"None." He answered plainly.

"So, basically Adam... you want me to play babysitter."

"Your job, Creer, is to investigate Zebes. Samus says he's been there before, so he'll be going with you." Adam spoke, clearly dodging the question. "If you have to teach him a thing or two in the process, all the better."

"Very well, sir. You said something about a small ship. What vessel will we be taking?" He bent over his desk and slid a card to me, which I took in my free right hand.

"This access card will get you a Tetrion Class scout ship. It's small, agile, and fast. Perfect for your needs." Adam mutters, starting to turn.

"You forgot 'only equipped with one seat' in that description, sir." I added. I had a pretty decent relationship with Adam. He found my 'unofficial' and sometimes 'uncalled for' comments quite refreshing most of the time, and wasn't afraid to embellish on them. He gave a nod at my comment and smiled.

"Yes... it appears I did. Any objections, Creer?" Grumbling under my breath, I shook my head. "Good. You leave immediately." We were thrown out of Commander Malcovich's office without so much as a 'good luck'. I felt like a felon being led to execution...

"Sooooo..." I stretched out as we walked. "See any good movies lately?" I muttered, hoping to strike up a conversation.

"No." He replied coldy.

"Read any good books?"

"No." Came the same chill response.

"Watch any-"

"Is this your idea of work? Needless conversation?"

"As a matter of fact, yes. It is. I feel it makes things a little easier on me, and anyone else. I take it you're the 'Mr. No Talk' type, use your weapon to speak for you."

"You'd be right." He answered as I rolled my eyes. I could tell this was just going to be a beautiful job...

Our quiet walk ended in the docking bay of the Galactic Federation Headquarters on Earth. Tetrion Class scout ships where small, agile vessels that could slip in an out of most situations without so much as a scrape. Did I mention they were small? Arriving at the one-seater ship, I groaned, looking it over.

"Sooooo... how are we gonna work this... should you sit in my lap... or am I sitting in yours?" I muttered idly, putting my free right hand on my hip. Not even a titter out of Samus.

"Why don't you just stand?" He droned, walking towards the ship and climbing in, the hatch opening as it sensed the key.

"No. Sense of humor. Whatsoever." I droned, rolling my eyes at the overbearing lack of humor my new partner had. I climbed in right after him and surveyed the inside, the cabin barely large enough for one person, but it was possible to squeeze two in. Standing behind the seat, he powered up the ship, the small vessel taking off.

-Planet Zebes-

The ion storm outside shook the ship back and forth, jarring me around inside the tin can. It had been a quiet flight, Samus pulling us in and out of Hyperdrive without so much as a word.

"Planet Zebes..." He finally muttered, staring out the viewing glass of the ship. "I called this planet home once... long before terror haunted the caverns below..." Rolling my eyes unseen under the visor, I waited silently for us to land. I was so ready to be out of this tin can, away from Crazy McMonologue for a bit. The ship lurched as we pulled into the atmosphere, the hull turning white hot on the outside. Samus pulled us into a crazy dive and managed to level off seconds before impact, landing us nicely Pulling the hatch open, I motioned for Samus to follow.

I just prayed that this was one of those missions I'd live to regret.

-Mission Clock: 0:41:32-

The ceiling above us was high, a good hundred or so feet over our heads, Samus looking around, almost as if he was searching for something, or someone, in particular. His visor grew to a bright green as he searched around more.

"What, exactly, is it you're searching for?" I finally asked. Before he could answer, a screech pierced both our ears.

"Him." He answered, looking straight up.

"Who?" I asked, looking up along with him, my visor switching to Thermal Mode.

"_Him!_" He spoke once more as a figure in the ceiling above, which I originally thought to be an ornamental statue, unfolded it's wings and screeched, dropping to the ground. It was a large Space Dragon, a rare species descended from the Dragons on Earth. They say that when the earth became too inhospitable for Dragons, they took to the stars, never to return. This one was large, standing about twenty feet tall, sporting about an equal wingspan, and it's tail added another good eight to ten feet to it's length. Samus seemed unphased by the creature, her weapon trained on it.

"So." The creature spoke, staring at us. "Mother told me there was an intruder in the base..." He let out a little hiss. "She failed to tell me I'd have to open my snack before I could eat it." He gave a chuckle as he looked us over. "I've seen those suits before... Chozo design, if I'm not mistaken... but you lot hardly look Chozo. You look... human." He gave a sniff. "Hard to tell with all that metal on you. I believe some introductions are in order, yes?" He craned his neck closer to us, giving us all a hard stare. "My name is Ridley the Third, son of the great Space Dragon Ridley the Second."

"Rather well spoken for a dragon, Ridley." I droned, adopting a less threatening stance.

"Just because I have to kill you, doesn't mean I can't be civil about it."

"You weren't civil when you killed my parents!" Samus barked, causing Ridley's head to retract closer to his body.

"I say... when was this?"

"The K2-L Colony... I was just a child then..." He continued, the end of his gun opening. "But I have no problem putting you down..."

"K2-L... K2-L... Ah, yes, the K2-L Colony. Tragic case, and tragically not my doing. My father, rest his soul, was responsible for this particular onslaught which you speak of, not myself. Otherwise, I'm sure I would have been more civil. We were just after the ammo, you see. Plasma weapons don't power themselves, you know." I had heard about the K2-L Colony attack. The colony itself was a production sight for Weapons Grade Plasma supplying, among others, the Federation with most of it's ammo. The Space Pirates attacked the colony when I was a boy. I remember my mother telling my father about it. I had heard there were no survivors... will I have to make an addition to Federation Files?

"I don't care. You look like him, and you act like him. In my book, it doesn't matter if it was you, or your father. I'm going to bring you DOWN for that day!"

"Well... I suppose it's all well and good. I was about to kill you and all, and I'm not so dishonorable then to deny my pray chance at first strike, but first... if you'd be so kind as to honor me with your names."

"Creer Andromeda, Galactic Federation." I spoke quickly, giving him no more information then he needed. He gave me a solemn nod as he looked to Samus.

"Samus Aran..." He spoke simply, his weapon never leaving the dragon's forehead.

"Very well then, Samus Aran, and Creer Andromeda. Let us see who walks away this day!" With a great flap of his wings he took off, and the fight begun.

For a giant Space Dragon, he was rather spry, able to dodge both missile barrage from myself, and the occasional Super Missile from Samus. He was getting tired, that much was obvious from my point of view. Hell, all of us were tired, mistakes were being made on both sides, but with two of us and only one of him... needless to say, more mistakes were being made on his part. Blood was now rushing to the surface of his scales, turning his original brown a vibrant red. His movements had become shaky, almost robotic, and very predictable. In one lapse of judgment on his part, one nanosecond of letting us get the upper hand, it was over. A Super Missile slapped him in the face, knocking him out of the air, causing him to crash to the ground before us.

"Gah!" I heard him gasp as he hit the ground, one arm trying to support his heavy frame. "Bugger, those hurt!" He staggered to a knee, then to his feet, but fell on his face rather promptly, his body too broken to support itself now. "I've got to hand it to you two... you're good..." He muttered, coughing a little, a patch of blood splattering the metal floor before him. He chuckled a harsh, raspy laugh which sounded much too painful. "Can't say I didn't do my best, though... Mother's not going to be happy at my failure but... I'll be dead, what do I care?" He gave another pained laugh and finally managed to his feet. "So, Hunters... how does it end?"

"Six of one, Ridley, you're dead regardless." I answered for him, the end of my arm cannon folding up again as I deactivated my missiles. "I'm not going to waste ammo on a corpse." He gave another laugh.

"Wise words indeed!" Coughing twice more, he looked at Samus. "And you? What are your thoughts?"

"I agree. You won't last much longer." Samus droned in response, his weapon dropping to a safe direction for the first time this fight. Ridley coughed a few more times as he dropped back to his knees.

"A clean death... I can't say I'd have given you the same..." His breathing became labored as life slowly slipped away. "Something tells me... this won't... be the last time we... last time we meet..." He struggled out before breathing his last, his arm stretched out to us, almost as if offering us a handshake. For a Space Pirate, and a Space Dragon, he was very formal about everything, even his death.

"You fought well, foe. Sleep now." I droned, turning to Samus.

"It hardly feels real..." He droned, staring at the corpse. "He killed my parents and... now he's dead..."

"It's finality, Samus, and it never feels real. When we get back to GFedHQ, I'll buy you a drink, and we can talk about it, alright?" Samus gave a laugh at my request.

"I might just take you up on that offer, Creer." He gave me a firm slap on my back. "C'mon. We got places to be." We both turned towards the door on the wall, leaving the corpse of the Space Dragon to whatever fate it had in store.


	2. Chapter One: Zero Mission

Chapter One: "Zero Mission"

They were some kind of power or nutriment distribution system, these strange tubes in Tourin. All I really knew about them, is both A: They were in our way, and B: Destroying them probably weakened Mother Brain, the creature at the center of this base, and the leader of the Space Pirates. Targeting the Flying Cheerios of Death, I covered Samus' entrance through the small crawl space above us, keeping them off him.

"Hurry up, Creer!" He barked to me. "I'll hold off the Rinkas."

"Rinkas. Cheerios. Same thing." I droned, leaping for the ledge, grappling it with my free hand. "It's like the Devil's Breakfast Bowl in here. Demon Cheerios in Lava Milk..." Samus was taking pot shots through the walls, the Wave Beam he'd found earlier allowing the shots to ignore the wall and hit their marks, the energy rings exploding. He had either not heard my joke, or ignored it. I simply rolled my eyes at this, not wanting to ruin the slightly budding friendship I liked to think we had. The moment my legs pulled through the hole, it sealed behind me. The gurgling behind me echoed off the cold metal of the room. Samus dropped off the ledge, landing on another ledge below. I looked down to see a metal platform braced against the walls, attached just before a glass jar. Landing on the ledge next to Samus, he cleared his throat.

"Sooo... how do you want to work this?" He muttered, staring at the jar before us.

"I'm thinkin' you've got the Wave Beam... so why don't you hold off the Cheerios..."

"Rinkas." I rolled my eyes as I responded.

"Whatever. If you wanna hold off the Rinkas, I'll see what I can do." Samus gave a nod.

"Sounds like a plan." He answered, turning away from the jar, firing a few times.

"Alright you." I spoke, activating my suit's missile launcher. "Let's dance."

-Mission Clock: 0:51:21-

I thought when they said 'Mother Brain', the 'Brain' was more of a title, then being an actual descriptor of what it was. When the glass shattered, I had expected to see some being strapped to some life-support system, barely alive, not a gigantic, red brain with an eye in the center. When the glass shattered, the fluid inside spilling into the lava, I was both astonished as well as disgusted. In retrospect, it made sense. What else but a living brain could control so many Metroids with such little effort?

Our fight with the creature lasted a good three minutes, Samus doing a bang-up job keeping the Rinkas off us, but the cannons were starting to get on my nerves. Cataracts in the Brain's eye was a sure sign of it's nearing death. Just as I was about to deliver the killing blow:

Click.

My weapon clicked when a missile should have exited. "Missile Launcher Depleted." My computer droned. I swore to myself and tapped Samus' shoulder.

"Samus! I'm out! Take over!" I commanded, the newcomer gave a nod and we switched, myself fending off the Rinka's.

"Time to end this, Mother Brain." He grumbled, his weapon's barrel opening to reveal the green warhead of a Super Missile. With an explosion and shouts, the glass cracked farther and farther, until it shattered, the Brain spurting blood out in several directions, finally dying in a massive, chunky, bloody explosion, which plastered Samus and my own suits in red, bloody goodness.

"Oh, oh, that's just... blegh..." I groaned, shaking the blood off. The jets on the back of Samus' suit fired, allowing him to jump to the next platform.

"Disgusting or otherwise, it's mission accomplished." He droned, turning to face me. I gave a solid nod and a hearty chuckle.

"And about damn time at that. Come on, let's get-" A red light above the tank where Mother Brain was began to flash, the intense strobe clicking on and off at a steady pace.

"Warning: Life Signs have been lost." A female voice echoed in the cold room. "EKG reads zero. Mother Brain Vitals: Gone. Engaging Fail-Safe Mechanism." It continued.

"Fail-Safe? Why do I not like that word?" I muttered, a screen turning on just to the left of where Mother Brain was, displaying two minutes.

"Self-Destruct Sequence: Initiated. Two Minutes until detonation. Evacuation Protocol activated." Beyond the jar which held the brain was a door which slid open.

"Oh, fuck my life!" I growled, leaping next to Samus. "Come on, buddy, we gotta jet!" He nodded simply and leapt towards the door, with me close in tow.

-Crateria-

We had ascended the tunnel which lead to the surface fairly quickly, the platforms crumbling beneath our feet as we ascended. Finally, we had come to an area I recognized as part of the area where we entered, the large crumbled wall before us barring our path.

"Shit!" Samus called, sliding to a stop, the timer on my HUD ticking down quickly. I backed all the way up to the door and started running.

"Samus! Move!" I called as the jets on my back opened all the way, a charging sound echoing inside my suit. Seconds before I would have pancaked against the wall, my HUD turned some nifty shades of blue, and I powered right through the stone, the wall exploding as I charged through. Sliding to a long, stretched stop, I came to a rough stop before our ship as Samus followed me through. Hoisting myself through the hatch, I started to power up the ship, sitting in the seat. Through the visor, I watched Samus leap onto the ship, the jolt from the engines through him off just enough to loose footing. "Oh, no you don't." I responded, snatching the last images of his hand before he fell of, and yanking him in. "Let's go!" The hatch closed above him as we pulled into space. The timer on my HUD hit zero and the ground below us erupted into a fountain of sparks and flames.

I couldn't help myself. I released a cheer as the weight of what we had done settled in. From behind me came another cheer, and Samus' arm and gun wrapping me in a hug. He held it for a few seconds before returning to an idle stance behind the chair.

"Sorry." He groaned.

"It's all good." I answered with a chuckle, pushing a few buttons on the control panel. "Let's head home, Samus. I want a drink."

"Creer, request." He continued, myself responding with a grunt. "Thanks for saving my ass out there. I thought I was done for."

"No problem." There came a hiss from behind me, and the helmet he'd been wearing was placed on the dashboard. "Good idea. Get a little air in the old hair." I disconnected my own helmet and placed it next to his.

"I meant it, Creer..." A sweet, soft female voice droned behind me, Samus hugging me again. "Thank you." Craning my neck to look at Samus, I noted a ponytail of long, golden hair and soft blue eyes meeting me. Samus Aran, was not a guy as I thought, but a woman... a very beautiful woman at that.

"You're a woman...?" I droned slowly, not sure if this was a dream or not. She smiled a beautiful smile and nodded.

"Yes, I am. Sorry about the deception but... I didn't know if I could trust... well... anyone, and I didn't know how well a female bounty hunter would have gone over with the Federation, so..." She shrugged. "I created the male persona."

"And played it damn well. I thought you were a dude!" I smiled and laughed to myself. Pressing the symbol on my chest, my suit teleported off me, storing itself within the ship. Samus gave a laugh and waved her free hand, removing her own suit. Underneath the pounds of armor her suit had, was a lithe, fit figure wearing a skin-tight blue suit which covered everything save her head and neck.

"Sorry, sorry. I'd still like to take you up on that offer for a drink, if you don't mind having one with a lady."

"Don't mind? Shit, I'd rather have one with a gorge-" A beep on the console interrupted me. "Shit... Space Pirate fighters..." Punching a few buttons I grumbled to myself. "Grab hold of something, Samus, this is going to be rough." Dodging and weaving incoming fire, I tried to avoid getting hit. As previously stated with this particular ship, it doesn't have much armor, so even the mildest of hits could be-

BLAM! BOOM! HISSSSSSSS!

The mixed sounds of a Space Pirate Permiater Missile striking the ship caused a low growl to escape my lips. "DAMMIT!" I shouted, fighting with the controls, I tried to keep it straight, the image of Zebes growing in the window. "Dammit all to hell, Samus, we're going down. I'll try to put her down softly, but we need to be ready to bail." She gave a nod and took hold of the eject lever above me.

The ground began to grow as it closed in. Fighting with the controls was useless, we were in a death spin, and there wasn't a chance in hell we could pull out. "Shit... it's no use. Samus, wait for my signal, and pull that lever. The fall will hurt, but not half as much as the explosion..." She muttered a response and readied. The moment the distance indicator turned green, around two hundred feet, I acted. "Pull it!" With a great yank, the eject pull opened the back of the ship, sucking us out into a freefall.

Samus' suit was Chozo in design, so it most likely had some kind of shock absorption system, like my boots. Tumbling through the air towards the ground, I fought to regain a vertical position, trying to land on my feet, instead of my ass. Samus was tumbling uncontrollably through the air, I knew she would never recover her position in time. Reaching out, I grabbed hold of one shoulder and pulled her closer. "Hang on to me!" I shouted over the roaring wind, her arms wrapping around me. Looking down, I silently questioned whether or not my boots would survive the fall or, more importantly, would we?

In our Power Suits, the suit would have absorbed any shock we could have thrown it, but outside, we had to rely on our, somewhat poor, boot shocks to take the fall. Samus held onto me tight as the ground neared. "Aaaahhhhh... shit..." She shut her eyes and braced.

We hit the ground hard, hard enough to crack the rocks beneath us, but thankfully, our shocks absorbed all the hit, leaving us unscathed. Samus and I let go of one another and I dusted her off with a smile.

"Aaaand we're down!" I gave her a friendly pat on the shoulder. "How you doing?" She gave a nod, still in shock from the landing, and finally looked at me.

"Yea, good... I'm good. Thank you." Nodding myself I waved away her thanks.

"Don't thank me yet until we're back home." I answered, looking around and taking in our surroundings. We were on Crateria, the surface of Zebes, the desolate, barren surface offering little protection from the rain which was starting to come down. Opening my hand, a few raindrops peppered my palm. "Oh, great. Rain." Shaking my head in defeat, I groaned.

"So... what's the plan? Do we wait for rescue... or...?" I shook my head again in disagreement.

"What rescue? Didn't you read our orders?" It came Samus' turn to shake her head.

"No, just the objectives." I cleared my throat and quoted.

" 'Eliminate the Metroid Threat below Planet Zebes, and destroy the Controlling Body 'Mother Brain'. For security purposes, no Galactic Federation contact will be made on either side until your return.'" I spoke, inhaling. "The short story is, until we get back to headquarters, or in some way get a message off to the Federation, we're on our own."

"Great..." She answered rolling her eyes. "Do you have some kind of plan, or something?"

"I had a plan... until we got shot down. Don't worry... I'll come up with something. But for now... let's get out of the rain."

"Where?" I stared at the massive Space Pirate ship in the distance. I gave a shrug and a smile, responding simply:

"Where else?"


	3. Chapter Two: Alpha and Omega

Chapter Two: "Alpha and Omega"

"This room..." Samus mutters as we enter a large, spacious room with a carving on one wall of what appears to be a Chozo Elder. Samus traces the carving with a finger, seemingly lost in memory. "I know it... Father took me here when I was really young... to get me attuned..."

"Attuned?" I questioned, looking her over. "Attuned to what?" She chuckled some, crouching down to a small carving in the very bottom of what appeared to be a crudely drawn human stick figure holding the hand of an equally crudely drawn Chozo stick figure. She smiled and laughed, placing a hand near the drawing.

"I carved this when I was just a little girl... Father chastized me for defiling an ancient relic... but I think he liked my addition." She smiled and stood. "Attuned to history. Father told me that if I ever lost what was mine, I could return here to reclaim it, so long as Chozo blood flowed through my veins." I looked to her, then to the carving, then back to her.

"Think it'll work for me?" I asked looking at the carving. "I've got Chozo blood..." Samus gave me a look and shook her head.

"I don't know. There's only one way to find out." She placed a hand a specific carving, placing her middle and ring finger together to match the design. The carving glowed ice blue and a ghostly image of a Chozo Elder appeared before us.

"Ah... little Samus. You've returned. Have you misplaced your suit?" He spoke soflty.

"It was destroyed, Elder... in an explosion. The Space Pirates shot down our ship, destroying both our suits." She spoke quickly bowing. The elder laughed.

"Ah, destruction is in their nature. I shall not begrudge you this, Samus. It was old, anyway. Allow us to return to you what was lost... but better." Closing his eyes, he held a hand out, a white light engulfing Samus. Seconds later, her suit had returned, with some much needed improvements. The flat, slanted pauldrons of her old suit were replaced by large, bulbous ones which offered more protection, but a larger target. Samus flexed her free left hand and nodded.

"Thank you, Elder." The elder nodded, turning to me.

"And this? Who is your friend?"

"Creer Andromeda... sir." I answered, bowing. He took my arm and looked at it.

"Ah, you, too have the blood in you. You are strong and smart, a man unlike any in this galaxy." He muttered, drawing a talon down my arm. "A prefect partner for our quick, agile Samus. The suit you had... considerably newer then the one gifted to Samus... but still outdated. Here..." He opened his hand and pressed it to my chest, my vision quickly flashing white. As the light faded, a visor appeared before me as several systems clicked on.

"Missile Launcher Functionality: Restore." My computer began. "Ice Beam Functionality: Restored. Long-Range Beam Functionality: Restored. Spazer Beam Functionality: Restored. Speed Booster Functionality: Restored: Varia Suit Functionality: Restored. Screw Attack Functionality: Restored. Charge Beam Functionality: Restored. Item Scanned: Title: Gravity Suit. Damage further reduced. Free movement in water. Item Scanned: Title: Space Jump. Anti-Gravity travel by continuous flips."

"Sweeeeeet." I muttered, quickly correcting myself. "Oh... uh... sorry. Thank you, Elder." I bowed. The elder chuckled at my reaction.

"Of course. It is as we have always known. The Alpha and the Omega must restore order to the galaxy. If ever you loose your new suits, return either here, or to another of our outposts. But do try not to loose them too often." With a laugh and a bow, the Elder disappeared.

"Nice guy." Samus was probably grinning behind her helmet. "So, where do we go from here?" She continued to ask, shifting about in place.

"This is a carrier right?" I asked rhetorically. "Those fighters that shot us down probably came from this ship... which means we can probably hitch a ride on one a few of them."

"How do you suggest we not get shot down the second we get into Federation Space?"

"Jump out, wave our arms in the air and broadcast clearance codes on all Standard Federation channels?" I responded, looking around. "It beats getting shot down. 'Down' being a relative notation in space." I turned into one of the reflective walls which gave me a look at my new suit. It kept it's red visor while the rest of it adopted a black and white color, probably from the Gravity Suit. My shoulders were giant spheres like Samus', except mine had dragon claws on them. "Oh, sweet! Dragon Hands! Awesome!" I had a slight fan moment, loving what happened.

"Gawk at your new suit later, Creer. We got us a bounty to collect."

-Mission Clock: 1:21:45-

"You sure we're in the right place?" Samus asked as the door opened, allowing us entrance.

"Pretty sure." I answered, nodding as I looked around the square room. "The Pirate's maps mark this as Command and Control. If we're gonna find a way to scuttle this ship, it'll be here." My visor's scanner clicked on as I began to search for something to scuttle the ship with.

"Hey, Creer?" Samus spoke behind me. "This door is locked..." This was punctuated by part of the far wall opening up to reveal a large metal claw pull some massive mechanical dragon from some unknown part of the ship. It was an exact replica of Ridley.

"Oh, great. Look, Samus! It's Ridley. Only BIGGER! And metal." My arm cannon opened as my missiles turned on. Samus turned on her heel and fired three Super Missiles at the machine's chest plate, the plate shattering, showing it's squishy insides. "Nice shot." I complimented, the woman nodding.

"AutoCannon Activated." My computer chimed in.

"AutoWhoobies?" I responded, my arm cannon opening farther, separating into a four-barreled missile launcher. Aiming and firing, seven missiles exited in a short period, striking the exposed chest area, the warheads detonating. I grinned. "Me likes!"

"Well, your suit is incompatible with Super Missiles. It has to be compatible with something mine isn't, and that is pretty cool." Attached to the wall as the machine was, it lacked the mobility the real Ridley had, which made it an easy target. All of these characteristics combined made the Mecha Ridley copy an easy target. After a few more Super Missiles and a couple other vollies from my AutoCannon caused it to explode in a rather brilliant flash. Unable to stay upright, it collapsed, it's eyes blinking.

"Self-Destruct System: Initiated. Self-Destruct in: Twelve minutes." I targeted the head and fired another missile. "Self-Destruct in: Three minutes." Slapping my free hand against my helmet I sighed.

"Hey Samus... you know that thing I just did? Remind me to never do it again?" She gave me a nod as the door unlocked, and the pair of us sprinted out.

The door locked behind us as we dashed through the doors towards the docking bay. Crawling through the tubes towards the bay, I growled.

"Fucking Space Pirates and they're god damn tubes. They can't even travel through them with ease, and they're fucking EVERYWHERE!" I growled as Samus popped out of Morph Ball on the other end, falling to the platform below.

"Stop your bitchin'. This place is gonna explode." Samus responded as I crawled my way out of the tube, flopping on the ground below.

"D'augh..." I groaned struggling to my feet. Samus took a run to the edge, took one look down and stopped. "What's up? What happened to 'This place is gonna explode'?" I looked down to where she was staring, two black Space Pirates blocking our path. Black Space Pirates were the elite of the elite, powerful foes in singles, a nigh-immovable force in pairs.

"Left." I droned, as my missile launcher clicked on.

"Right." Samus responded, her Super Missiles turning on. The pair of us got the jump on the Pirates, Samus firing a Super Missile at the one on the right, staggering it enough for her to fire another, which knocked it to it's back. I fired a barrage of six missiles at mine, the Pirate doubling over in pain from the collision. I came down hard on the pirate, knocking it to the ground with the weight of my suit. Keeping it down with my foot, I pointed the barrel of my gun at the Pirate, and sneered.

"Present for ya, Fugly." I droned, firing another volley from my gun, his head exploding. "Done!" I shouted, looking up to see Samus firing a Super Missile into the other, striking him down. "Ha! I finished first!" I gloated.

"Guys always do."

"Damn straight we – That was sexual, wasn't it?"

"Maybe." She responded as the docking bay doors opened, allowing us to our fighters. I waisted no time in claiming mine, and with a few pushes of some buttons, the craft lifted off the ground, Samus taking the other. Opening the hatch, I motioned her on. Firing the craft's afterburners down the launch ramp, we rocketed into space as the ship exploded below us. I started messing with the communication channels, eventually stumbling on Samus'.

"Let me just say, Samus, it has been a right pleasure working with you these last hour or so, and well... I just wanna say if this was a one-night stand, it's been a pleasure."

"I think we'll be working together more. Don't you worry." We engaged our Hyper Drives, heading back to Galactic Federation Space.

-Final Mission Time: 1:34: 11. Mission File: 'Zero Mission' Closed and Complete-

Thankfully, my plan of 'Jump into Federation Space and spam docking codes on all frequencies' plan worked like a charm, and within an hour of jumping into Fed Space, we were seated before Adam Malkovich for debriefing.

"Creer... Samus... So good of you to return. What of your mission?" He asked, looking over our suit changes. I took my helmet off and took a seat.

"Mission Accomplished, sir." I answered, saluting some. He nodded, offering Samus the same courtisy, which she took.

"And Ms. Aran? How did she fare?" He droned, looking over papers.

"Samus? She was great..." I paused. "Wait, you knew he was a she?" Adam gave that crass smile I both loved and hated.

"Of course, Creer." He pulled a file from the pile of them on his desk. Opening it, he began to read. "K-2L Colony, destroyed fifteen years ago, only survivor was a five-year old human female by the name of Samus Aran. Presumed rescued by Non-Federation means." He put the file on the desk and folded his arms on his desk. "What was rule number one I told you when you joined, Creer?"

" 'Time flows like a river, and history repeats. Those who do not learn from the past are damned to repeat it.' " I quoted his lesson as I always did. He nodded in approval.

"Indeed, Mr. Andromeda. Samus is a very... unique name. In the Chozo language, it means 'Alpha', or beginning. I imagine in Samus' parent's case, it was to be used both practiacally and lovingly to denote her as their first born." He inhaled. "You'll find that searching for either 'Samus' or 'Creer' on the Federation Database will net you only two results, your files... and the meanings of your names. Alpha and Omega. Beginning... and the end."

"Beginning and end of what?" I asked generally, not really liking the idea of this 'beginning and end' crap, no can I say I believed it.

"Unfortunately, we can't say. Apparently, your births were foretold by Chozo scholars in years before the Federation's formation. You two are, apparently, destined to be together." He started to weakly organize his papers, the act being more busy work then actual work.

"When you say 'be together', are you talking about working together in a completely platonic sense... or what?" Samus asked, causing Adam to smile and shake his head.

"The details of the prophecy aren't that clear, I'm afraid. You're just destined to 'be together'. Let's leave it at that and call it a day. I believe we agreed on a number for this job, yes, Creer? I believe a hundred thousand credits to the pair of you are in order." He pushed a few numbers on the console to his right, probably forwarding some currency to us. "You two have earned a little rest, but I must ask you to return here by week's end, as I will have another job for you then." He nodded and gave us a flick of his hand, telling us to leave. "Any objections, Lady?" He addressed Samus, who shook her head. I stood, collected my helmet and left Adam to his own devices.


End file.
